I saved up a little of money for the past Triskeles Auction and am very pleased with my two purchases. This one was the first one that caught my eye. I have been looking for an awesome Vespasian. I may have mentioned before that the year of four emperors is one of my favourite times in Roman history. Vespasian was sent to Judea to suppress the Jewish revolt and was there when Nero died. A couple months after Vitellius secured his rule Vespasian's troops declared him emperor. However, rather than march on Rome directly he sent one of his strongest supporters at the head of some of his legions towards Rome while he went to Alexandria. He knew Rome was reliant on the grain supplies of Alexandria and by controlling the grain supply it would be only a matter of time until he controlled Rome itself. It wasn't until mid-70 that he actually traveled to Rome. Vespasian. A.D. 69-79. Æ sestertius (32 mm, 25.01 g, 6 h). Rome, A.D. 71. IMP CAES VESPASIAN AVG P M TR P P P COS III, laureate head of Vespasian right PAX AVGVSTI, S C across field, Pax standing, facing, head left, holding olive branch and cornucopiae. RIC 181; BMC 554; BN 512-5. For some reason the camera on my tablet loves to highlight red so I have included the auction photo as well to get a better idea of the colour. Big bronze is awesome.
Wow => super pick-up my Manitoban coin-friend (congrats!!) Gorgeous!! I only have one lone Vespasian example ... an AR Denarius => man, I love your big, bronze examples (well done)
Very nice. I take it the auction images are more true to the coin's coloring? Either way, I like this coin. You did well. Congratulations! I have several Vespasion coins, but none as nice as yours. However, it is one of my nicer coins: VESPASIAN AR Denarius OBVERSE: IMP CAESAR VESP AVG, laureate head right REVERSE: PONTIF MAXIM, Vespasian seated right, holding branch and sceptre. Struck at Rome, 74AD 3.4g, 19mm RIC 685, S 2305, C 387
Not being a 12 Caesars fan in particular and not able to pay what some of you pay for nice coins I only have one low end Vespasian sestertius. I bought it in 1988 from Frank Robinson mostly because it is a bit over 35mm diameter. It is one of those 'better in hand' coins because photos show the patina faults more than the eye. Is a 35mm coin worth more than a 34mm specimen? Have you seen a fully 36mm Vespasian?
What a great looking Vespasian.. Nice color and sharp details. There were a lot of nice bronzes in that auction, I regret not l participating. My favorite Vespasian is this weathered old dupondius.
Nice coins everyone and thanks for the compliments! Yeah, I need to play with my tablet more. Whenever I have a coin with even a touch of red it likes to fixate it and give the rest of the coin the reddish tint. I think this coin would have been within your budget if you were a Vespasian fan. I don't think I paid too much in excess for it. It did take me a couple months of saving for my limited coin budget though! It, and its partner to be posted later, was also partially funded from the sale of a couple of the coins from that group lot I bought awhile ago.
I had such an quick bidding finger with all the awesome bronze. I almost came away with a third but had to hold myself back!
I have a poxy Pax sestertius. Looks like the coin was electrocuted. It's still interesting enough to keep-- was from a mixed lot. Vespasian, 69-79 AD sestertius, 35 mm, 25.2 gm Obv: IMP CAES VESPAS AVG PM TR P P P COS III, laureate head right Rev: PAX [AVGVSTI], S-C; Pax standing left, branch in outstretched right hand, holding cornucopia in left arm. Ref: RIC II 437
I've always been looking to get a big brass Sestertius myself, the cheap ones tend to look really messed up, but every once in a while, a nice one can appear for not too much depending on the demand and grading. Great coins!
I don't actively collect Flavian coins but admit to being distracted by them occasionally. I have never taken the plunge and bought a Sestertius. I did dabble with middle bronzes of the period for a while, which were within my budget. The OP coin is a very attractive large lump of bronze. I doubt that I will ever get round to owning one though given my limited budget.